Bargaining With Apples
by Faye C. Marie
Summary: Percy surprises Annabeth with an apple from the Garden of the Hesperides. This leads to a series of events not even the Oracle could predict.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello everyone! It's Fayecee again. My last day of school was last Friday, so to celebrate, I decided to write another drabble for my story, **_**Drabbles & Demigods**_**. The problem is, the idea I had ended up turning into its entirely own story/oneshot thing in my head. I'm not sure if I'm going to continue this, so for now it's just an oneshot. This takes place a few years after TLO, and TLH never happened.**

**Read, review, and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: If I owned Percy Jackson, you would have seen a lot more Percabeth, and about half the characters that died in the books would have lived.**

Bargaining With Apples

Percy was sitting in his cabin, trying to fall asleep. Needless to say, it was not going well, thanks to his ADHD. He had tossed and turned, kicked off his covers and readjusted them, and even went as far to steal Tyson's pillow off his bed (which he was not occupying at the moment) and use it to cover his head. Yet, sleep still evaded him. It felt as if hours had passed. He looked at his clock radio, and started.

It was only 10:32. _Ten minutes_ after he went to bed. Percy groaned and threw the extra pillow away. A thought suddenly came to him. Shouldn't it be able to fall asleep, thanks to his Achilles curse? Ever since his little dip in the Styx, he was out cold whenever he sat down for more than a few minutes (this made it even harder to stay awake during history class).

There were only two explanations for this phenomenon: either the Stoll brothers had convinced the Hypnos kids to mess with his sleep pattern again, or his subconscious was excited about something and refused to shut down. Option one wasn't very likely—the last time the Stolls had pulled that trick, they ended up at the bottom of the canoe lake, thoroughly thrashed and beaten. Percy had a feeling the two sons of Hermes wouldn't do that any time soon if they valued their limbs.

Option two, on the other hand, was slightly more probable; the only thing was that Percy wasn't sure on was what there was to be excited about. He had to get up early tomorrow to set up the arena for his next sword fighting class, and that certaintly wasn't a very exciting prospect.

Percy lay there, still hunting for a good reason, when suddenly he heard a knock on his door. He quickly pulled the covers back on and made it look like he was sleeping. After a few minutes, the door suddenly opened and then shut itself. It appeared that no one had come in.

Percy suddenly had an excellent idea about what there was to be excited for. Stifling a laugh, he waited until somehow, his covers were once again ripped off and dropped on the floor. On instinct, he reached out into the apparently thin air. His hands met cloth and skin, and Annabeth let out a very un-Annabeth-like scream as he pulled her down on the bed with him. He hunted until he found the bill of her Yankee's cap, and then yanked it off the blonde's head. Annabeth appeared on his lap, in a fit of giggles.

"Don't do that, Seaweed Brain!" she managed to get out between laughs as she smacked his arm continually.

Percy just smiled at his girlfriend, apparently unfazed by the repetitive hitting of his arm. "And why not, Wise Girl?"

"You scared me! I thought you were asleep!"

"And I thought you were staying at the Athena cabin tonight!"

"Touché."

Percy joined Annabeth in the laughter. It felt so good to be able to do this—goof off with Annabeth without worrying about any wars, or quests, or what other people around them thought or said. They stayed in that state of peaceful laughter for a few more blissful minutes, and then their talk started to drift into other subjects. The two covered everything from Grover—("I heard he was up in Canada, trying to talk some nymphs into help protect the wild.")—to school—("I don't care about math! I'm going to end up hunting monsters for the rest of my life anyways. Why on earth would I need to know how to factor trinomials or whatever that junk is?")—and even a debate about which weapon would be better in a fight ("Percy, a knife is a lot better than a stupid sword. You can get closer to your opponent, which is better for offense, and if you can use a knife well, you're more skilled than most swordsmen.).

When the conversation came to Annabeth's blueprints for Olympus, however, the daughter of Athena seemed to become more animated than ever in the discussion. "Oh Percy, it's so wonderful! I have so many ideas and plans. It's almost done, but every time I go over my blueprints, I end up changing something. I can't believe I got this opportunity, you know, to—"

"Build something permanent," Percy finished, obviously bored.

Annabeth frowned. "Why did you say it like that?"

Percy sighed, and then said, "Because, Annabeth, that's what you've been saying ever since the gods gave you the job. Frankly, it got old a long time ago." He braced himself for the verbal and/or physical onslaught the blonde was going to release on him any second for such a insulting comment. He was thoroughly surprised, then, when Annabeth just let out a depressed sigh, put her hands on her face, and leaned back on his bed.

"You're right Percy. I have been saying that a lot," she mumbled through her fingers.

"Um, excuse me," Percy began, "but did you just say that _I_ was _right_?"

Annabeth spread her fingers apart and glared at her boyfriend. "Don't get used to it, Seaweed Brain. I'm just so stressed with the job. It's amazing, but I have so much work to do. Sometimes I feel like I would have been better off just saying no when my mom asked." Near the end, Annabeth's eyes started to go misty. Percy knew her fatal flaw was hubris, meaning that she thought she could do everything better than everyone, even the gods. If she doubted herself now, then the pressure really must have gotten to her.

"Annabeth, don't say that!" Percy said incredulously, pulling her up in his arms and kissing her forehead. "You've always dreamed of doing something like this. So being the Official Architect of Olympus is harder than it looks. If anyone can pull it off, I know you can."

Annabeth smiled as she wiped a tear away from her eye. "Thanks," she sniffed.

"No problem."

They continued to sit there for a few minutes, with Percy gently kissing various areas on her face, before Annabeth asked, "Percy?"

"Mhmm?"

"Do you ever regret not taking Zeus's offer of immortality?" Annabeth continued, turning around to face him.

Percy thought about that for a second. "Sometimes. But then I think about what I used my gift for instead, and what I got out of saying no, and I think it's worth it.

"Besides," he got up from the bunk, "immortality is kind of overrated. If I ever really want to become immortal, there are other ways of doing it."

"Oh really?" Annabeth said inquisitorially, "And what may they be?"

Percy shrugged. "Oh, I don't know. There's some garden—I think it's called the Garden of the Hesperides or something like that—and word is they have these apples that would make you immortal if you ate one. So, all I'd have to do is swing by there, grab two apples, and _POOF!_ We're immortal."

Annabeth's eyes widened. "You're not serious. Percy, there's a dragon guarding those apples! Not to mention you'd have to get by the Hesperides. Only a few heroes have even attempted to get the fruit. Luke… he tried and failed, and got that scar on his face as a result. The only hero who did it was Hercules, but he also killed the Nemean Lion with his bare hands. And even if you did manage to get two, Hera would do her best to get them back even before you could make it here. Plus—"

Percy smirked. "I wouldn't be so sure about that Annabeth." He walked over to the wall where a shield with a hurricane design hung. He lifted it off the nail and set it on the ground, revealing a silver safe in the wall. After twisting the dial a few times, the door clicked open. Inside was a small box, no bigger than a loaf of bread. Percy picked the box up and brought it over to his bunk. Slowly, he lifted the lid.

Annabeth gasped when she saw the two golden apples, perched precariously in the box. They looked almost too beautiful to eat, yet the aroma they emitted convinced her it was okay; the apples would be the most delicious thing she would _ever_ eat. Even ambrosia and nectar would pale in comparison to the fruit. All her desire, all her temptation came bubbling to the surface, and she felt as if she would die if she did not at least taste a bite, a nibble of the food in front of her. She reached for one, but realized what she was doing right before her fingertips brushed over the shiny, metallic skin.

"Percy…." she whispered, bringing her hands to her mouth instead. "How…"

"I decided to get them a few months ago," Percy explained as he shut the lid, affected by the fruit too. "Y'know, just in case you wanted to try it. It was pretty easy, actually. All I had to do was distract the Hesperides with Mrs. O'Leary, then sneak up behind the dragon and—"

"You idiot!" Annabeth yelled, punching his shoulder. The aftershock of the apples had subsided. "You could've died! Immortality is not worth you dying! What on earth possessed you to do it?"

Percy rubbed his shoulder. "I was thinking about you! I don't want to lose you, Annabeth. One of the main reasons I didn't accept immortality the first time was because I didn't want to leave you behind; I didn't want to risk ending our relationship right then and there."

Annabeth stared at him, shocked. "Seaweed Brain—"

"No!" Percy cut her off. "Listen to what I have to say, Annabeth. Hear me out."

She looked a bit hurt. Percy never talked like that to her. In spite of herself, she gave a tiny nod, urging him to continue.

Percy took a deep breath to calm himself, then said, "I love you. I really do, Annabeth. I want to spend the rest of my life—no, eternity, with you. I did this so that can happen." He set the box down on the bed, and pulled Annabeth into his arms again. She looked like she was going to cry.

"Think about it. Think about how happy your mom would be; her favorite daughter, around forever, doing a job she loves. If we became immortal, you won't be as pressured by the whole architect job. You'll have all the time in the world to get your designs perfect. And if they don't last, or Olympus gets attacked again, you'll always be around to fix them." Percy finished, gently kissing her on the lips.

"So," he said after a few minutes of awkward silence, "what do you say?"

**A/N: I think I'm going to leave it there :P Make sure you review if you want me to continue!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you for all the reviews, favorites, and alerts encouraging me to continue! I really appreciate it. I have decided to go on with this story, but I'm not exactly sure where to leave off. Hopefully I'll have a better idea of what to do when I get there. **

**Sorry it's taken me so long to update. I have softball games 4 nights this week, so it's been hard to get on the computer. My updating will get better once the season ends. **

**Until then, read, review, and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: The day I own PJO is the day Ares admits his undying love for soap operas. So, basically it will never happen.**

Bargaining With Apples; Chapter Two

"Percy, I don't know _what_ to say," Annabeth gulped. Actually, she did; she just didn't know how to say it in a way that wouldn't set him off.

Percy smirked. "Say that you think it's a wonderful idea."

Annabeth let out a snort and elbowed him in the stomach. "Don't put words in my mouth, Seaweed Brain."

"Hey!" he exclaimed as he put his hands up in surrender, "Just trying to make it easier for you."

After a few seconds of calm silence, Annabeth sighed again. "I… I like the idea Percy. I love you too, and I wouldn't mind spending an eternity with you."

His grin widened. "Great, so do you want to—?"

"I wasn't finished!" Annabeth interrupted. "I just don't think we should do it now."

Percy's smile melted off his face. He looked crestfallen. "Why?"

"First," Annabeth explained, "we're only eighteen. I don't know about you, but I'd hate to peak my life before I even get out of high school."

Percy stared at his girlfriend for a few seconds. That sounded so much like what he said when Zeus offered him immortality, it was disturbing. "Um, okay. Are there any other reasons?"

Annabeth nodded. "What if we have kids? They'll look older than us before we know it."

Percy's eyes widened. "K…k…kids?" he managed to stutter out.

"Yeah," Annabeth said. "Don't you want kids?"

Percy, being the brilliant Seaweed Brain he is, was able to save himself and say, "Um…yeah, maybe."

"Not to mention," Annabeth continued, deciding to ignore the last remark, "I don't want to leave everyone else behind. Sure, we'd have Thalia around for a while, but Grover, Nico, our mortal parents…they'll all die eventually, Percy. I'm not ready to watch them get old and pass away, while we stay eighteen forever."

Percy's shoulders slumped. "I didn't think about that."

Annabeth smiled. "Of course you didn't, Percy. You can't think of everything."

"Well, I tried!" Percy proclaimed, standing up from the bed and starting to pace. "I had it all planned for once; I wanted it to go off without a hitch. I knew how I was going to get into the garden, distract the Hesperides and Ladon, get the apples—"

Annabeth interrupted him by getting up from the bed and kissing him. She felt his rigid form relax the second their lips met. He slid his hands around her waist, and she responded by rubbing the small of his back. He groaned, and the kiss became even more forceful. When she finally pulled away, they were both out of breath.

"That was a really nice way to get me to shut up," Percy gasped.

"That's not the point," Annabeth panted. "Percy, you can't plan every little detail. Not even an Athena kid can do that. Did you even think about what you'd do if I said no?"

Percy sighed. "No."

"Well," Annabeth said, "If it makes you feel better, I didn't say no. I just said not now."

"I guess I'll have to take that for the moment," Percy grumbled. "But don't be surprised if I try to slip you some apple slices. Ow!"

That last part was because Annabeth had punched his arm again. "Don't you dare, Seaweed Brain. Or not even your Achilles curse could save you."

"Point taken," Percy mumbled.

* * *

><p>The next morning at 7, Percy was begrudgingly walking towards the sword-fighting arena. It had taken Annabeth almost twenty minutes to convince him to get up; they had stayed up talking to about 2 in the morning, and eventually decided it would be better if she crashed at his cabin until breakfast. Still, he was not functioning well on only about 4 hours of sleep.<p>

The whole reason Percy was even going to the arena at this ungodly hour was because of his laziness (and density) the day before. His last class of the day had run late, so instead of having cleanup like usual, he decided to just let everyone (including himself) head to dinner, thinking the cleaning harpies would take care of the mess. Later at the campfire, Annabeth informed him that the cleaning harpies were on a strike of cleaning the arena, protesting that it was wrong for them to have to clean so close to deadly weapons that could disintegrate them on contact. So, Percy chose to just wake up before breakfast and take care of the arena for his class, rather than skip the rest of the campfire and risk being out after curfew. Needless to say, he was regretting his decision now.

When he arrived at the arena, the first thing he saw was a wall of black racing towards him.

"WOOF!" Mrs. O'Leary barked as she tacked her owner. She stuck out her tongue and licked his face a couple times, just until he was thoroughly drenched in drool.

"Okay girl! Down! Get off me, Mrs. O'Leary!" Percy shouted. The hellhound, deciding to obey, stood up, chased her tail a couple times to show it who's boss, and then proceeded to chew on the remains of her third pink rubber yak of the month.

With his dog pacified for the moment, and most of the hellhound slobber shaken off, Percy began his cleaning. He had to admit there was quite a bit to do: the remains of yesterday's dummies had to be swept up and taken off the hooks; the loaner weapons required a polishing; new dummies needed to be put out for the day; someone had to figure out how to get the javelin off the wall. It would take a team of people at least a few hours to complete the task, and Percy hoped he wouldn't have to skip breakfast to finish in time.

While he went to the cupboard to get a broom, Percy's thoughts drifted to his conversation with Annabeth last night. He was struck by how… similar her reasons were compared to his when he turned down Zeus's first offer. It was strange, even for demigod standards. Percy couldn't help but feel as if it was a message, a sign of some sorts. Did it mean that he was blinded right now, blinded by a mad desire, and that becoming immortal wouldn't be the best thing for them? Did it mean that he had forgotten his morals and purposes to complete a pointless, harmful mission?

Percy didn't know the answers, and was frustrated. He thought he was doing a good thing. It wasn't like he was expecting Annabeth to jump up and down screaming, "YES! YES! YES!" when he asked—but he at least wanted her to flat out agree with him. He wasn't expecting a "not now". In some ways, hearing a "not now" was worse than a no. He didn't know when she would be ready, if ever. If something happened… if she got hurt or (Percy had trouble thinking this) _died_ before she was ready, he would be heartbroken. No, it would be worse than heartbroken. He would be half dead, especially since he knew he could have prevented her death in the first place.

He was still deep in reflection when someone behind him said, "Need some help?"

Percy looked over his shoulder. "Annabeth! Yes!"

Annabeth grinned. "Nice to know I'm appreciated, Seaweed Brain. Where do I start?"

Percy quickly scanned the arena, seeing what still needed to be done. "Well, you could either start cleaning the loaner weapons, help me get out the new dummies, or get a ladder and try to remove the javelin from the wall."

She glanced to the right, and her eyes widened when she saw the long, spear-like weapon sticking out from the wood a good ten to twelve feet above the ground. "How on earth did someone get that up there?" she asked as she headed towards the offending piece of weaponry.

"Someone threw it up there yesterday," Percy responded, dragging a heavy practice mannequin to one of the stands. "Isn't it obvious?"

Annabeth glared at her boyfriend. "I mean, how did they throw it up there? They must have a pretty good arm to chuck a javelin ten feet up a wall."

Percy shrugged as he hoisted the dummy up onto a hook. "I have no clue. I turned my back for five seconds, and suddenly there's a javelin in the wall. It's weird—we weren't even using javelins yesterday."

"One of the Hermes kids might have broken into the weapons cabinet yesterday," Annabeth theorized. "As for how it got up there, one of the Ares kids could have thrown it, especially if they wanted to make life harder for you."

Percy snorted. "I wouldn't put it past one of them to do that."

Annabeth, deciding to take matters in her own hands, marched over to the supply closest and pulled out a ladder. She carefully carried it over to the right wall right below the javelin, and then scaled the steps at a record speed.

"How's the rest of your class?" she inquired as she reached for the javelin madly. Even with the ladder, it was still a foot above her head.

"They're alright," Percy said. "Some of the Ares kids give me crap every once in awhile, but most of the time they all pay pretty good attention. I kind of think they're afraid of me."

"Of course they would be," Annabeth mumbled to herself. She stood on her tiptoes and finally was able to grasp the shaft of the javelin. She let out a triumphant laugh, and then proceeded to pull it out of the wall. It didn't budge.

"Hey!" she called, "It's really stuck!"

Percy raised an eyebrow and jogged over to the base of the ladder. "Seriously?"

Annabeth bobbed her head fiercely. "Yeah!"

"Did you try pulling on it?" Percy asked.

Annabeth stared at him. "No," she remarked sarcastically. "Why would I try pulling it if I want it out?"

Percy rolled his eyes. "Just yank it again."

Annabeth put both hands on the javelin and tugged on it as hard as she could. Suddenly, the weapon gave and Annabeth nearly fell backward with the extra momentum. The ladder shook violently, threatening to topple over. Percy gasped and scrambled to grab the rungs closest to him, trying to steady the wooden structure. Both Annabeth and Percy let out a sigh of relief once the ladder had flapped back into place. Even Mrs. O'Leary (who had been watching from the far corner of the arena) looked reassured. Annabeth quickly scurried down the steps.

"Well," she started, brandishing the javelin with pride. "That was fun."

Percy frowned. "Not really. You almost gave me a heart attack Annabeth!" He pulled her into a hug, being relieved she was okay. He couldn't help but flash back to his thoughts earlier. If she got hurt, he wouldn't be able to live with himself. He was about to embellish on his point when they both heard the conch signaling breakfast.

"I'd better get going. Breakfast's about to start," Annabeth said, leaving his embrace and propping the javelin up on the wall. "Are you coming?"

"Sure," Percy decided. It didn't really matter if the loaner weapons weren't cleaned. He'd just have his first group polish them during the last ten minutes or so of class. Annabeth took his hand and they started walking to the dining pavilion.

As they walked, Percy came to a conclusion—the sooner Annabeth was ready to eat the apple, the better.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: See my apology AN at the bottom. For now, read, review, and enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own PJO. There it is, sweet and simple.**

Bargaining With Apples; Chapter Three

The next few days passed in a whirlwind of activity for Percy and Annabeth. The Hunters of Artemis were coming on Friday, so the entire camp was preparing for the traditional game of Capture the Flag. Armor was dug out; weapons were fixed and polished; and the cleaning harpies grudgingly cleaned out the Artemis cabin. The Hunters rarely visited, so their cabin was only cleaned thoroughly when they were guaranteed to be staying at camp for more than a night or so.

Even with all the extra work, Percy's thoughts still managed to drift off to the situation with Annabeth occasionally. He knew that she wouldn't eat the apple willingly until she thought the timing was right. He also knew that if he tried to trick her to eat the apple, she would see though his attempt and foil his plan. Nevertheless, little idea bunnies of how he could get his girlfriend to eat the apple kept popping up in his head. He considered them for awhile, but deemed them all insubstantial eventually. Annabeth wasn't dumb; it would take a genius to outsmart her.

The day of the Hunters arrival, Annabeth had locked herself in her cabin, determined to finish one last blueprint before Thalia came and distracted her.

"It's only for a few hours Percy," Annabeth explained as she brought out a box labeled: OLYMPUS DESIGNS. She was setting up her workstation, and as soon as she pulled out her grafting pens and blueprints she was going to kick Percy out so she could work.

"I know," Percy complained as she rifled though the contents of the box. He was lying on her bunk, flicking Riptide (in pen-form) up in the air and catching it repeatedly. "But during those few hours we have our _last_ break before the Hunters come. I want to spend it with you. Once Thalia gets here you're going to spend all your time with her."

Annabeth stopped searching and turned towards her boyfriend. "Is that what you're worried about?"

_Well, it's _one_ of the things I'm worried about_, Percy thought. "Yeah."

The blonde rolled her eyes and sat on her bunk next to her boyfriend. "You're being paranoid, Percy. Have I ever done that before?"

"Yes, actually," he replied, which gave Annabeth a shock. "When we released Thalia from her tree, you spent the rest of camp with her and pretty much ignored me."

"That's different," Annabeth hastily recovered. "I hadn't seen her in almost seven years. She was dying the last time I saw her. We had a lot to catch up on."

Percy snorted. "More like a lot of reasons to overlook me."

Annabeth elbowed him in the ribs, and then stood up. "Get out of here, Seaweed Brain."

"Why? Because I'm annoying you?"

Annabeth grabbed Percy's arm and pulled him off the bed. She started steering him towards the door. "Well, that's part of it, but no. You have archery in five minutes. Don't want to miss that now, do we?" she quipped.

Percy groaned. "I forgot about archery. Do I have to go?" Annabeth pushed him out the door; he tripped slightly on the threshold but caught himself on the doorframe. He stood up and turned around to face her.

Annabeth grinned deviously. "Yes, yes you do." **(1)**

Percy moaned. "Fine. Let's hope I don't cause any casualties today."

Annabeth's smile widened even further. "That's the spirit!" she said enthusiastically. She then pecked her boyfriend on the cheek, said a quick goodbye, and slammed the door shut before Percy could come back in. There was an audible click of a lock, and Percy knew he'd better run to the shooting range if he didn't want to be late.

* * *

><p>Percy had to admit today's class wasn't as horrific as it could have been. He didn't shoot any campers (although he did manage to hit a tree—the dryad living there wasn't very happy about that) and one of his arrows actually made it to the target. Granted, it was in the very outer ring, but he considered it an improvement from hitting the ground. Chiron had been highly impressed with his progress.<p>

He now had a free period for about an hour. The Hunters were due to arrive any minute, so he decided to go and check if the Athena cabin was still off limits. He randomly wondered if all the other children of Athena were locked out too, or if they had keys and could get in when they needed to. Shrugging it off, he climbed the cabin's steps and then proceeded to try the door. It wouldn't budge, meaning Annabeth was still working.

Groaning, Percy then walked to the beach, his favorite place to be at camp when there was nothing going on. He lied down on the sand and closed his eyes, intending to take a nap. His ADHD acted up again, and suddenly he had another idea to get Annabeth to eat the apple. He could invite her on a picnic, and then one of the things he could pack would be apple sauce. But, instead of using usual apples in the dish, he could use the Apples of Immortality! The plan was foolproof.

Then another thought came to Percy. What if Annabeth doesn't like apple sauce, or if she doesn't eat it? He mentally smacked himself. Well, _that_ plan was going in the trash, leaving him back at square one. He was contemplating the idea of baking the apples into a pie when a goat bleat shook him out of his reverie.

"Hey, Percy! Taking a nap?" a familiar voice asked.

Percy's eyes shot open. In front of him was a misty image of a satyr. His horns were longer than the last time Percy had seen him, sticking up a good three or four inches above his curly brown hair. His goatee was starting to look like a wispy beard. He had on a shirt that said _Let It Be_ **(2) **and had a picture of a rainforest on it. Percy grinned.

"Grover! It's nice to see you, man. Where are you?"

The Lord of the Wild smiled. "Canada. I'm trying to convince some dryads to help save the Wild."

_Dang,_ Percy thought, _Annabeth was right._ "How's that working out?"

"Okay. Some of them still aren't that willing to help," Grover scratched at his arm furiously. "I had no idea twigs could be that itchy."

"Like how you didn't know that acorns could leave bruises?"

"Exactly."

Percy laughed. It was nice to talk to Grover. He hadn't come to camp this summer yet, but he had visited Juniper earlier that spring.

"So," Grover said, "How're things back at Camp Half-Blood?"

Percy shrugged. He didn't know whether or not to tell Grover about his situation with Annabeth. He settled on not immediately. "Fine. The Hunters are coming today."

Grover raised an eyebrow. "Really? That sounds… interesting. Good luck for Capture the Flag."

Percy smiled. "Thanks."

There was a minute of silence before Grover said, "Perce? Why do I get the feeling you're not telling me something?"

Percy sat up straighter. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, you seem kind of…. jittery, I guess you could call it. My empathy link is buzzing like crazy." Percy silently cursed the empathy link. He'd forgotten about that.

"Well, you see," he began, "I'm kind dealing with this thing."

"Does this 'thing' involve Annabeth?" Grover asked.

Percy's eyes widened. "How did you know that? Was it the empathy link again?"

"No," Grover replied with a shrug, "I just know you well. Tell me about it."

And Percy did. He told Grover everything; how he had gone back to the Garden of the Hesperides to get the apples, kept them safe until he could mention the idea to Annabeth, when he told her and when he got the awful "not now", the incident with the ladder, and how he was trying to come up with a plan to get her to eat it soon. He even attempted to explain why he was so paranoid for her to say safe. Grover had listened though the entire rant, gasping and making comments at all the right moments.

After Percy had finished his rant, Grover thought for a second.

"I don't think you have that many options," Grover said, "Any plan you come up with, Annabeth's going to beat."

Percy groaned and flopped back on the sand. "Tell me something I _don't_ know, man. I've gone through like ten of them in the last day or so! Nothing seems like it's going to work."

"Well, your only choice then is waiting it out," Grover reluctantly told his friend. "Annabeth's going to outsmart anything you throw at her, and possibly get mad that you forced the decision on her before she was ready."

Percy shuddered. Having Annabeth mad was not fun. "But what if something happens to her before she's ready? I don't want her to—"

"Percy!" Grover yelled, startling the demigod. "I get you don't want Annabeth to get hurt. I really do. But you can't safety guard her till she wants to eat the apple. You're going to have to trust the fact she can defend herself."

A man's voice in the background of the IM said, "Oi! Grover! Come over here!"

Grover turned towards where the voice came from. "Be there in a second, Foley!"

"Sorry Percy," Grover said, facing the message again. "I've got to go. I'm coming back to camp next week to visit Juniper. We can talk more then."

Percy smiled sadly. "Okay, G-man. I'll IM you and tell you how Capture the Flag goes."

"Great," Grover smiled. A lout thumping noise came from the direction Foley was in. Grover took a glimpse backwards and winced.

"Got to go. Bye!" Grover rushed, wiping his hand over the mist to end the connection.

"Bye," Percy said, a moment too late. He readjusted himself so he was lying on his back again and closed his eyes, this time falling asleep.

* * *

><p>Annabeth glared at the blueprint in front of her. She had completed all the other Olympian's temples, the throne room, and practically all of the other buildings on Olympus. But she was stuck on one. The one goddess she absolutely couldn't stand.<p>

Hera.

Annabeth had been determined to finish that particular blueprint today; she had put it off ever since Athena had given her the job. She would sit down to complete it, but she would end up working on something else. It was when she had gone over the plans for the amphitheatre for the tenth time when she realized something.

She was procrastinating.

And so, after almost two hours of staring at empty graph paper and scribbling down inadequate ideas, Annabeth was right back to where she started. Nothing.

"Gah!" she shouted as she shoved the paper, pens, and measuring tools aside. She placed her head down on the wood desk, massaging her temples. Why was it so hard for her to create a temple for the Queen of the Gods?

That's when she heard the horn.

Annabeth lifted her head from the desk. Could it be?

The horn sounded again, louder this time than before. It was followed by another, higher sounding horn, and another, until an entire symphony of horns was floating through the air. She grinned widely, all memory of her earlier frustration gone. The Hunters were here.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I am so sorry for not updating for a few weeks. I went to camp for a week, and when I came back I sat down to write and could come up with NOTHING. I had the worst case of writers block for about two weeks. I entered a contest, and it got a bit better, so I'm trying to get myself to write as much as I can before the block comes back. **

**In other news, I've planned the rest of this story out as well as the epilogue; there won't be a sequel, even if you guys beg (but I'd like to see some more reviews. Last chapter I only got 3, while the first one had 14). I'm not very good at writing multi-chapter stories, since I have trouble updating regularly, so I think I'll finish up my other chapter story and then stick to one-shots after this is done.  
><strong>

**Note: I am currently looking for a beta. They must be able to put up with my busy schedule, willing to nitpick, and either have some experience beta-ing or writing before. PM me if you're interested.**

**(1) If anyone can tell me what show this line is from, I'll give them a virtual cookie!**

**(2) I had to throw this in there. I'm a huge Beatles fan :P**


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